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Big Brothers Big Sisters receives continued support

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Wisconsin's St. Croix Valley Branch has been honored for years by the support of County Materials Corporation.

Their support helps Big Brothers Big Sisters Northwestern Wisconsin to serve children in St. Croix and Pierce counties. In fact, last year the program staff in the St. Croix Valley matched 173 children with caring adult mentors from the community. This programming is only possible due to support from organizations such County Materials Corporation.

For more than 100 years, Big Brothers Big Sisters has operated under the belief that inherent in every child is the ability to succeed and thrive in life. All of the children served by Big Brothers Big Sisters face adversity in their young lives, whether they are a member of a single parent household (through death, incarceration or divorce), a member of a low income family where resources are scarce, a family member abuses drugs or alcohol, or one parent may be in the military.

No matter the circumstances under which a child needs the support of another adult, we are there to help. As the nation's largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers ("Bigs") and children ("Littles").

Big Brothers Big Sisters provides a system of ongoing evaluation and support which is proven by independent studies to help families by improving the odds.

Mentoring works.

For example, when compared to their peers not enrolled in Big Brothers Big Sisters, 58 percent of mentored children make strides in social adjustment, including a decrease in violent behavior such as hitting. Educational achievements are also more feasible for mentored youth, with 65 percent reaching higher goals.

John Russett is a regional reporter for RiverTown Multimedia, covering a variety of issues facing RiverTown communities. Previously, he worked at the Red Wing Republican Eagle, where he reported on education as well as crime and courts.